Page 112 of Capuleto

"Absolutely not!" I exclaimed, slamming my fist on the table.

“Respect, Romeo, I am il capo of this family. I decide, and I take responsibility.”

“But Don Giuliano…”

“Leave your uncle to me. If it makes you feel better, we’ll discuss it with him, and if necessary, with ‘the tribunal,’ but I doubt your uncle or they would ask for your head. I appreciate your offer; it says a lot about you and the good son I’ve raised.”

“I feel like an idiot! How did I not see it?” I rubbed my face with my hands.

“Because you’ve always had your mother’s heart. You are a just man; that is not something to reproach. You trusted your wife because we had no indication that Korolev was still alive. They tried to kill her, kidnapped her, and none of us imagined it was a smokescreen. Everything pointed to Cheng; it was a mistake.”

“One that cost us dearly. What are we going to do?”

“I won’t argue that, but we need to keep a cool head. You did well not to kill her yet. I agree with you that she can be a good lure. According to the message you showed me, her brother wants her as his right hand, to run the business in Costa del Sol, which gives us some leverage.” He stroked the polished wood and took a sip of his drink. “The best thing we can do is use her to catch Korolev. Once we have him, we’ll offer the heads of the entire family to Don Giuliano.”

“Do you think Jelena, Irisha, and Sarka are aware?”

“Whether they are or not, it's best not to leave loose ends.”

“You don’t mind killing your lover?”

“Per favore, Jelena is beautiful and a good lay, but the love of my life has always been your mother.” He reclined in the leather chair. “Listen to me carefully. We will act as if nothing has happened publicly. I will have Jelena and Irisha guarded, claiming it’s a precaution due to the events at the funeral. Have one of your men travel to St. Petersburg and keep an eye on Sarka at all times.”

“Do you want us to kidnap her?”

“Not yet. It will be enough to know where she is at all times. You need to respond to Korolev’s message to gain his trust, as if you were his sister. No one should know that we’ve discovered his intentions or that he’s alive.”

“But he might think Aleksa told me.”

“He’s not stupid. He surely has you under surveillance. That’s why it’s important to create a scenario. Tell your men and his that Nikita has the flu and that Aleksa turned up at the hospital and is in the ICU, that the Chinese must have cornered him somewhere. If there’s a mole, they’ll inform Yuri.”

“I also think someone has been selling us out.”

“That’s why it’s important to stay alert and pay close attention to details. Love makes us a bit stupid, you and everyone else.” I nodded. “What about your wife’s right-hand man?”

“We don’t know where he is.”

“It’s important to find him. That man is dangerous.”

“I’ve given the order that when he shows up at the house, they take him to one of the hideouts. I fully trust the people who live there.”

“That sounds good.”

“How can you look me in the eye?” I asked, feeling so disappointed in myself that I didn’t understand how my father wasn’t.

His hand gripped my forearm.

“Everything in life has a solution except death. You did well to come and talk to me. Go back home, set in motion what I’ve asked you to do, and we’ll fix this mess.”

“Yes, father,” I agreed, finishing my drink.

The first thing I did when I set foot in the house was respond to Yuri’s message. I kept it brief, preferring to err on the side of caution so he wouldn’t suspect anything. I didn’t receive an immediate reply, but at dawn, I found a thumbs-up emoji. I was satisfied with that.

I entered the garage and took out the box of Yuri’s keepsakes. In the absence of anything better, a few photos at the barbecue would do. Maybe it was a childish act, but I needed to burn everything I had treasured, that heap of lies that only meant something to the fool R Capulet.

I was more devastated than I could admit. It crushed me to think about how much I had opened the doors of my soul to those damn Russians. The Korolevs had destroyed me, and they were going to pay for every insult, betrayal, and death.

I took a bottle of liquor and downed it, watching every memory go up in flames.

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